Spirit of a Wolf God
by Dax1209
Summary: Scott raged in battle with the wolf. The war for dominance wore on for hours as the man and beast fought to control his mind. Somehow he knew that if he lost the fight he would become a feral beast, his humanity locked inside the recess of his mind while the wolf ran on a killing spree.
1. Chapter 1

Scott knew he wasn't the strongest, knew without a doubt that Derek would destroy him in a fair fight so he did everything he could to avoid one, but standing there, staring at the Alpha as he walked out of the house he knew his luck had run out at last. Derek was livid that the Kanima escaped and Scott had more than one unresolved issue with everyone trying to kill Lydia without making sure she was the correct target first. "Give me two hours." Resigned though he was, he didn't have time for this fight, and his mom was already freaked enough about everything going on without him showing up to the hospital in blood soaked clothes.

"You've got one."

Stiles looked back and forth between his best friend and the retreating figure of the Alpha. "What just happened?"

"I challenged Derek."

"Are you crazy?" Stiles hit Scott upside the head. "What were you thinking?"

"That I wasn't going to let him kill anyone."

"Oh." Somehow Stiles didn't think that was the real cause of the display, but he didn't call his friend on the obvious lie. Scott had been challenging Derek in one way or another for months and the elder hadn't called him on it before now.

"Come on. I have to pick up Mom and you need to get Lydia home."

"Scott." He shook his head at Allison, asking her not to interfere. He knew this day was coming and he couldn't put it off anymore. Stiles watched on in uneasy silence as Scott drove away, knowing that life would look much different in the morning and he wasn't sure that it was a good thing.

.

* * *

.

Scott barely made it into the subway station before his body was launched across the room. Derek was livid and he wasn't about to hold back this time. There was a good chance that this fight would wind up with Scott dead on the floor. For weeks he had been standing in the way, attempting to hold back the tide of war from both sides and the Alpha was sick of being stopped by the upstart Omega.

With a roar Derek shifted, warning the rest of the pack to stand back. This fight was between Derek and Scott and he wasn't going to tolerate interruption. Scott stood, ignoring the pull of the claw marks where Derek grabbed him, as he shifted into his beta form and engaged. Claws slashed and teeth snapped in a vicious battle of wills, the younger refusing to yield his ground, even as blood poured down his arm and thigh. Scott clambered to his feet, wavering with loss of blood and centered his mind on the target. With a last burst of energy, he launched his body at the bleeding Alpha, slicing his claws across Derek's eye and kicking at his exposed side. Growls filled the room as Scott's body was slammed into the pavement and pinned by the throat. The Omega clawed at the hand blocking his airway, scrambling to bring in precious oxygen in his panic. Before he was completely lost to the black, Derek flipped him on his side and dug his fangs into the exposed flank. Scott cried out in pain even as his body sagged heavily in surrender. Crowing with victory, the Alpha loomed over the broken body under him before the red haze started to clear and he took inventory of the damage. His body shifted back to his human visage and he squatted over the bleeding form. "Damn it, Scott." He stood, carrying the newest pack member in his arms. "Why do you have to do everything the hard way." Snarling when he caught the scent of the Argent clan clinging to Scott's clothes, he tore off the offending garments and started to patch up the injuries.

It took close to two hours for all of the wounds to be stitched closed and bandaged. When he was finished, Derek pulled one of his t-shirts over the cold skin of the beta and covered him with a tattered blanket. Satisfied that the stench of Allison Argent was erased by his own, Derek turned to change his own bloody clothing before stalking into the station to talk to the rest of the pack.


	2. Chapter 2

Derek expected the bond to be idle while Scott was unconscious but the constant thrum of emotions he felt from the rest of the pack should have been present when the beta opened his eyes. When the bond was silent he knew that Scott was somehow fighting him, fighting what should have been impossible. "Open the bond."

"What?"

"Your wolf submitted, but you are still fighting the pack bond. I should be able to feel you." Derek snarled in anger when Scott held his ground, held his eyes instead of cowering back. "Stop fighting me, you idiot!"

"I can't!" Scott's fists tangled in the pallet. "You want to kill people, just like him."

One of the seats was yanked from the bolts on the floor and chucked out the door. "That's why I need you."

"To kill people?" Scott threw a disgusted glare. "I'm not going to do that, Derek. You'll have to kill me first."

Scott flinched back from the angered growl, but remained steadfast in the face of the warning. "I need you to stop me."

It felt almost as if Derek had landed a physical blow as the air rushed from his lungs. "Oh." Staring dumbly at the heaving chest of the Alpha, Scott became aware of the fear hidden beneath the rage that was coursing down the forced bond. "To stop you?"

"Yes." Derek gritted his teeth, hissing out the words. "I need you in the pack. You're the only thing stopping me from becoming Peter."

Confusion colored Scotts face. "How?"

"Because you still care." The handrail buckled under Derek's grip. "I tried to find it with them," he gestured out to the other pack members. "But they see it as a gift, like me. Humans are beneath us." He glowered at Scott. "You're the only one who still cares about them."

As the realization of Derek's confession set in, the pressure became stifling. Scott wasn't prepared to be the humanity for an entire wolf pack. "How am I supposed to stop you from killing people if you want me to stop fighting you?"

Derek groaned in frustration, rolling his eyes at the obtuse beta. "Stop fighting the pack bond. If I can't feel you then I still see you as a threat, even if you submitted in a fight."

Scott shifted uncomfortably, clutching his side as he reclined against the subway wall. "I don't know how."

"How are you not dead yet?" Derek sighed and moved over to the pallet, hunching over him. "As long as you fight your other side, you fight me. Use your senses and follow your instincts. They should be telling you to accept to the bond."

Trepidation filled the air. "If I give in to my instincts, I'll lose my humanity."

"No you won't." Derek had the urge to smack Scott upside the head, suddenly understanding how he could be failing two classes. For someone so intelligent he was incredibly dense. He knew once the information was there that Scott was tenacious, but getting anything in his brain was trying. "The wolf is part of you, but it doesn't supersede you, unless you try to fight it for too long. You'll keep your humanity for the same reason you keep your control. You won't allow the wolf to hurt innocent people."

Scott closed his eyes, concentrating on the wall he built to cage the beast inside. He could almost picture the wolf pacing the length of the cage, snapping its jaws in anger at captivity. He took a deep breath, sinking into the visualization until he was able to touch the cage. It had taken a lot of trial and error to build this construct in his mind, and a lot of lacrosse balls to the head, but finally he had achieved control over his transformations. Calmly, his fingers brushed the metal of the latch and lifted. He prayed Derek was right as man and beast stared at each other in a challenge. Scott's eyes widened in fear as the beast lunged.

"Scott?" Derek panicked when Scott dropped heavily on the pallet and started to convulse. "Erica!"

The remainder of the pack ran into the car, shocked by the scene. "What's wrong with him?" Erica moved to pull Scott on his side, more than familiar with the protocol for seizures.

"I don't know. This has never happened before." Derek moved to the other side of the beta, helping Erica hold him down. "Boyd, get his legs."

Boyd dropped to his knees, snapping his iron grip around Scott's ankles, drawing them to his chest as he fought the bucking of Scott's convulsions. "Come on Scott, wake up."

"Isaac, grab the kit in my purse. I need the needle." Erica pointed to the bag carelessly slung over the emergency exit handle. Before she could give further instructions, Isaac had the cap off her syringe and the needle was in her hand. Unloading the contents into his neck, she watched with relief as the muscles stilled and Scott sagged heavily on the floor.

"What was that?"

"Kanima venom." She flinched back from Derek's growl. "I was afraid of the damage I could do to myself if I ever had another seizure."

Derek sighed heavily, understanding her fears. It was the same reason Scott still carried an inhaler even though he didn't need it.

"What's happening to him?"

Watching the eyes flutter back and forth in REM, Derek shuddered at the lifeless face. "I don't know. It's like his body is rejecting a bite, but he's already transformed." He rolled Scott more comfortably on his side and shifted to sit against the wall. "All we can do now is wait."

.

* * *

.

Scott raged in battle with the wolf. The war for dominance wore on for hours as the man and beast fought to control his mind. Somehow he knew that if he lost the fight he would become a feral beast, his humanity locked inside the recess of his mind while the wolf ran on a killing spree. Even as he saw the wolf limping, he felt the strength in his body wane. This battle wouldn't last much longer and he could only hope he walked away the victor. In a last desperate attempt, he wrapped his hands around the lunging animal and flung it over his head stomping his foot down on the throat until the wolf sagged in defeat. Scott sank to his knees in relief and took a deep cleansing breath.

"Well done, Little Healer."

Scott jumped to his feet, spinning to see an alpha behind him. "Who are you?"

The beast let out a snarling chuckle. "Not an alpha." He raised his staff and leaned heavily against its weathered wood. "We are Shaman." He gestured between them before inviting Scott to sit. "We are ruled by the spirit instead of the wolf." The silver eyed werewolf pointed to the wolf lying behind Scott.

"Is that why I've been fighting him?"

The older werewolf smiled. "You have done remarkable considering you had no one to train you. We are not like other werewolves." He sat on the ground and crossed his legs, watching in amusement as the curious boy followed suit. "For one, Shaman rarely feel the pull to hunt on the full moon. You will more likely be pulled here, into the spiritual realm to confer with the Wolf Gods." Scott looked dubious. "As you can see," He gestured to his body, "we are also able to achieve alpha form."

"Wolf Gods?" Scott tapped anxiously on his battered sneakers. "I have to talk to Gods?"

The Shaman chuckled. "You are talking to one now, Little Healer. My name is Hythor and like me, all Wolf Gods were once Shaman until they passed permanently into the Spirit Realm."

"You mean died."

Hythor let out a hearty laugh. "Yes, Scott. We died." He leaned forward conspiratorially. "Some of us more gloriously then others. Bagnorok was killed by a falling piano and Gregor by a jealous husband. I warned him not to sleep with her."

"What?" Scott watched the misty faces of other Wolf Gods flash angrily in the background and wondered, not for the first time if he would wake up in a straight jacket upstate.

"You are not crazy, Scott." Hythor smiled reassuringly. "Most of us were born werewolves, but there have been a few Shaman that were bitten. It has always been more difficult for them to accept the change. It is why Derek couldn't train you. Your spirit was fighting the feral nature of the wolf. Shaman are healers, spiritual peace keepers, where as the wolves are by nature aggressive. Now that you have conquered the beast, you will find yourself more at peace. You will have all of the wolf's strengths, but you will not feel the need for violence unless it is to protect your pack."

His worn and beaten body sagged with relief. "You said I'd be a healer, but there is so much I don't know, so much Derek doesn't either."

Hythor placed a hand on his arm before helping him to his feet. "Much of that you will learn here during the full moons. There are unfortunately only a few Shaman left in the world and no one close enough to mentor you, so I will be training you. But you are weary today, so we will meet again soon. Tonight I am here only to explain what you are and to help you finally join with your wolf." He lead Scott back to the wolf. "He will no longer hurt you." Following the older wolf's lead, he leaned down and placed a hand on the scruff of the wolf's neck. Scott gasped at the strong emotions coming from the animal. He could feel submission and peace coming from the wolf but there was an underlying feeling of worry that he couldn't place. "That is your Alpha watching over you. You've been unconscious for several hours."

"He's worried about me?"

Hythor took pity on Scott when he saw the truly baffled face. "Scott, the other members of your pack are bonded to Derek with loyalty, but that isn't what Derek needs. When you give yourself to a pack, as you did your human friends, you give your all, heart and soul and Derek needs that to hold on to his humanity. He lost all his links to human emotions when the the last of his family was killed. He doesn't know how to live without that sense of family in his pack and without Laura he is lost. If you accept him, truly, and allow yourself to open the bond, you will be surprised. He will become less like Peter and more like the boy he was before his life was destroyed, but he needs someone to care." Hythor put his hand over Scott's heart. "Not because of what he can do for them as Alpha, but because he matters. That trait he sees in you, it's one of the reasons you became Shaman. You will heal not only physical injuries, but also the fractured spirits of your pack, all of them."

"Why me?"

Hythor smirked. "Your friend Stiles would say that the force is very strong with you." Scott laughed and tangled his hand in the fur of the wolf. He felt the animal draw closer to him as a blinding light enveloped them. "I will see you soon, Little Healer."

.

* * *

.

"Derek? I thought you said Beta's couldn't do that?"

Derek's eyes snapped open and he looked down to see Scott beginning to transform into the alpha form. "Get out of here and no matter what you hear do not come back until I call for you."

Boyd looked ready to protest until Derek forced the order down his bond to the trio. Giving one last worried look at Scott, he pulled the other two out the door of the subway car and out of the station.

Silver eyes snapped open, glowing with caged power as Scott leapt to his feet, claws at the ready. He sniffed the air cautiously, identifying all the scents lingering in the small space. Derek held perfectly still, claws drawn as the wolf started to creep toward him, scenting the air. Scott's chest rumbled as he stood on his hind legs, towering over Derek's human form. Slowly he raised his hand, placing it over the Alpha's heart and howled into the night. Derek felt his knees weaken as a jolt of power shot through him, bringing with it all the emotions Scott kept closed off from him. Panting heavily, he reached up and tangling his hand in the fur at Scott's neck. He tipped his head forward, waiting a moment for the other wolf to mimic his movement and allowed their foreheads to touch. He smiled when he felt the body under his hand shift and shrink back down to human size. "Always the hard way."

Scott smirked, and allowed his body to crash back down to his knees. "You're the one who told me to become one with the beast."

Derek snorted and squatted in front of him, amazed at the peace he was feeling from the younger wolf. "What happened?"

"Another epic death match." Scott rubbed wearily at his eyes, watching as the bites and claw marks from the first battle of the night healed, despite the source of the injury. "I had to fight the wolf and if I lost I would be feral, but I won and a Wolf God showed up and told me I was a Shaman."

Derek hissed in shock. "Shift."

"What?" Scott looked up at the harsh order, but he didn't feel anger coming from Derek.

"Shift your eyes." Derek grabbed his chin, tilting his head from side to side as he studied the silver, almost clear eyes. "I thought they were a myth. I've never seen one."

Scott pulled back and nodded. "Hythor said there weren't very many left that's why he's going to be training me." He accepted the help as his Alpha pulled him upright and over to a seat. "He said I'll start getting pulled into the Spirit Realm during full moons to learn how to do whatever it is I'm supposed to be able to do."

Derek sat next to him, dropping his head against the window. "Shaman are spiritual advisors to the pack. They only go into battle in a crisis, and mostly as field medics. Usually they stay back in the den to heal the wounded." He rubbed his eyes. "We've always had healers, but no one in my family has ever had the necessary magical strength to achieve the Shaman status."

"This is going to bite me in the ass isn't it?"

Derek nodded and folded his hands together. "If the Argent's find out about you, you will be in even more danger than you are now. Shaman are sacred and are protected at all cost by the pack. When you are at full power you will be able to heal us, no matter what weapon they use. Legend says a few shaman have even pulled pack members back from death." Derek scowled. "It means we are also going to have to worry about other alphas trying to kidnap you."

Scott snorted. "Should I just put up a cot in my room now, or do you want to pretend you aren't going to be sleeping in my chair every night after I go to sleep."

Derek smirked. "The cot would be appreciated."

Rolling his eyes, Scott fought to stand up and shuffle over to his bloody clothes. A snarl from the Alpha stopped him from reaching for the pants though, as a pair of clean jeans and a sweater were thrust into his hand. The older wolf had a tendency to be over bearing in protective mode when Scott was merely an Omega, and Scott was reluctant to entertain the idea that it was going to be much worse now that he was a rare and vital part of the pack. He hadn't really been kidding about the cot, knowing that Derek's fear of the Argent's taking him away would have his body guard camped out on his floor if necessary. He drew the line at thinking about other packs. Between the Argents and the Kanima he had enough to worry about. "I suppose you are going to drive me home too?" Derek nodded, almost daring him to argue, but Scott just shrugged and pulled on the clothes, smirking at the overwhelming scent of Derek coming off the material. He would have suggested getting a tattoo stating he was property of the Hale pack if he didn't think the Alpha would seriously consider the detour on the way home. At the moment he just wanted a hot shower and a solid night of sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Derek shook his head when he arrived back at Scott's house after filling in the rest of the pack about Scott's new status and the importance of secrecy. While there wasn't a cot in the room, there was a sleeping bag and a few pillows on the floor along with a note saying if he wanted a real bed he could sleep in the guest room across the hall. He sat in the window for a moment, watching the youngest, yet most controlled member of his pack. He truly was shocked by how much Scott was able to achieve on his own, with only Stiles to help. When he factored in the inner battle the wolf brought to the shaman's spirit it was a wonder he hadn't gone crazy. Instead, he managed to maintain the biggest bleeding heart Derek had ever seen in a human, let alone a wolf.

He shouldn't really have been surprised by the development. As he'd already admitted, Scott was the closest to his humanity of all the wolves that Derek knew, so the spiritual aspect wasn't unexpected, although he was surprised by the magical component. Given his job at the clinic and the amount of healing, both human and supernatural that he was learning from Deacon, the healer title fit as well. He was already too strong to be considered a simple Beta, and in retrospect, a shaman was obvious when he fitted Scott into the pack. His disbelief hinged more on the fact he never met a shaman before, and had believed they were as much of a myth as a Kanima.

Given his rarity, and value to the Alpha's mental well being alone, there wasn't a force on the planet that Derek was going to allow to separate him from the young healer. Just having Scott in the same room, now that he accepted his gift, brought a sense of serenity that Derek hadn't felt since the death of his family and he was sure he would actually manage a decent night of sleep. Scott seemed calmer as well, at peace with the other aspect of his nature, especially when Derek informed him that Shaman were healers and not warriors. There was no doubt that Scott could hold his own in defense of the pack, but the fact he wouldn't be expected to fight, would more often then not be kept away from the battles seemed to lift a heavy burden off his chest.

.

* * *

.

Scott felt his mind drift while he was sleeping and he found himself sitting on a log in the redwood forests. He looked up as a large grey wolf appeared before him, knowing instinctively that it was Hythor. "Where are we?"

The wolf stretched and shuddered as it shifted into its alpha form. "Near my village, Little Healer." He pointed to the east. "I was not expecting you to come so soon." There was a glint of pride in his eyes. "You found your way back to the Spirit Plane remarkably quickly for a new shaman."

He was answered with a scoff. "I think I might be unconscious again." Scott stretched his legs and picked at the moss on the log. "I was in a battle with my Alpha before I had my mental battle royale. Healing took a lot out of me."

Hythor nodded. "Even still, you wouldn't have come back until you were called at the full moon so something must be weighing heavily on your mind."

"The Kanima. It's a friend of mine."

"Ahh." Hythor came to sit next to his protege and patted his forearm. "And you wish to know if there is a way to save him?"

"Derek told me that some shaman were able to cheat death. I figured if I can do that then there must be a way to fix what went wrong with Jackson's transition." Scott kicked at a rock to battle his nervous energy. "He's a douche, but I feel bad for him. I know he was supposed to be a wolf but something went wrong."

Hythor sighed and reclined against one of the great pillars of nature. "There is a way to heal him, but it takes a great deal of power and concentration. You aren't ready for that yet."

Growling in frustration, Scott stood and started to pace the clearing. "I have to do something. Everyone wants him dead and someone is using him as their own personal hit squad. He shouldn't have to live like that."

"I didn't say I wouldn't teach you, only that it would be difficult. First you need to learn focus. Right now your mind is being pulled in dozens of directions and you are going to have to learn to compartmentalize, to clear everything but the task at hand from your thoughts." Hythor smirked. "Who knows, it might even help you pass Chemistry."

A bubble of laughter crept out of Scott's mouth, "I think that might be a lost cause."

"Nonsense." He stood and blocked the young wolf's path. "You will find great clarity when you can turn down all of the loud thoughts. Once you can do that, we will work on the spell work and necessary herbs to heal your Kanima." He gestured for Scott to sit, cross-legged in front of him. "I will meet you here when you go to sleep, but I must warn you of two things. You are completely unaware of anything that happens in reality while you are here, so make sure you have someone to watch over your body in your sleep. And second, you will not fully achieve rest while you are here so I will not permit you to come more than four times a week for a few hours at a time or you will burn out. You must be well rested to be able to serve your pack."

Scott frowned but nodded. "I think I can agree to that. Derek is here guarding me. Can we start tonight?"

"Very well. Find a position that is comfortable for you and clear your mind of all thoughts." Hythor peaked through his lashes sporting a wry smile. "Including your Allison's physical virtues."

Choking on a gasp, Scott shook his head and pulled his knees up under his chin. Wrapping his arms around his legs, he rested his cheek on his knee like he did when he was a boy trying to calm his overactive lungs and fight off panic. His eyes drifted closed and he took deep calming breaths, focusing on the sound of the air exiting his nose.

"You're thinking too loud."

Scott groaned as he tried to refocus. Allowing his thoughts to drift freely brought him through a whirlpool of concerns that needed to be taken care of yesterday but he hadn't gotten around to, again. "I don't know how to clear my mind."

Hythor opened his eyes. "Imagine a room full of boxes, like the cage where you locked away the wolf, but sealed containers instead of cages. Every time a thought pops in your head, file it in a box. Label the boxes however you want, names, places, things. But keep the thoughts in the boxes and add all new thoughts until you run out of thoughts. This is important because later, I'm going to teach you how to access these boxes and filter through the information inside when dealing with a problem or when you are seeking guidance." He smirked again, "or taking an economics exam."

Scott growled, but tried again. He was able to find the room again, even build the boxes but he ended up having to stand on the boxes marked Stiles and Allison to keep them from bursting open and releasing the information inside. After an hour or two his mind was starting to look like a storage shed and he was getting fidgety.

"That's enough for now. Work on that tomorrow before you go to bed and I will meet you again in two days."

Scott nodded and stretched his legs. "How do you keep boxes closed?"

Hythor shrugged. "It's your mind. Imagine anything you want — locks, chains, doors — just as long as it does the trick."

"Right." Scott looked doubtful, but his mind did feel a little less crowded.

"It will come with practice Little One, but working on anything else is useless if you can't focus on a solitary task without interruption." Hythor's warning made sense and Scott let loose a resigned sigh. At least he was better able to focus then Stiles. This would have been a nightmare for his ADD friend.

.

* * *

.

"Don't do that."

Scott woke to see Derek looming over him. Squeaking in an undignified manner, he glowered at the Alpha as he fought to regain his steady breathing. "What happened?"

"You stopped broadcasting."

"Broadcasting?" He could tell by Derek's impatient sigh that he wasn't going to be deterred by the question.

"The bond. You were indecisive then just gone."

Scott frowned, contemplating his emotions. "I wonder if it happens when I'm in the Spirit Realm."

Derek sat back in surprise. "You went back already?" He was answered with a nod. "What did you learn?"

"Hythor said he can teach me how to heal Jackson, but I have to learn focus first." He found Derek's disbelieving snort to be offensive. "Hey, I can focus."

"On anything not Allison?"

Scott rolled his eyes and crawled out of the bed, ignoring the comment. "I'm supposed to meet Hythor every other night while I sleep, but I will need someone there to watch over me. He said I won't know if something happens here and my body will be vulnerable."

"I'll be here." There was no hesitation in the response and Scott didn't bother refuting him. He doubted Derek was going to let him out of his sight for any reason other than school, and only then because Boyd, Erica and Isaac would be around to watch over him. Scott knew by the end of this he was going to feel like some precious artifact locked behind a case with a full compliment of guards.

"Can I at least wear my own clothes today or are you going to freak again if I don't smell like you?" Derek smirked and Scott threw a shoe at his head. Twenty minutes later when he returned from the shower, Derek was lounging on his bed, no doubt adding his scent to the only place in the room he couldn't get to the night before. "This sucks."

Derek shrugged and tossed him back his shoe. "Get ready. I'm driving you to school."

Rolling his eyes, Scott went to his closet, irritated by the scent of the Alpha on all his clothes. "What did you do, try everything on?" Derek remained silent. "If my underwear smells like you I'm shooting you myself and then letting you die." The comment earned him a wry grin. "Get out. I don't think I'm going to be kidnapped by some rival pack while I'm getting dressed."

"You've got ten minutes before we leave, dressed or not."

Scowling, Scott wondered if he could pray to these new Wolf Gods to get Derek to back off him. Somehow he could only picture Hythor laughing at him when he asked so he sighed heavily and pulled on his clothes. "This is really going to suck."

.

* * *

.

"Are you alright? Why do you look fine? Why did Derek drop you off?" Stiles paused, his nose crinkling in concentration. "And why do you smell like Derek's cologne?"

"I'm fine and I'll explain everything later." He gestured up to the security cameras in the hall.

"Really? That's all I get?" Stiles sighed and hurried after the boy speeding to his locker. "This better be epic, Scott." He noticed an irritatingly cryptic look on Scott's face. "Oh crap. You're turning in to Derek. He's making you a mini sour wolf. This is epic."

Scott just laughed at his best friend and pulled out his books. He was not surprised to see Isaac standing on the other side of the door when he closed it again. "You my guard dog for the day?"

"This morning anyway." Isaac smirked. "Derek told me to use any means necessary to make sure you pay attention in class, too. Something about piss poor grades."

"If people would stop trying to kill me I would have more time for homework." Scott snarled with irritation and walked away, trying his best to ignore his confused friend and his silent shadow. Dropping into his seat, he desperately sought to calm himself down as Stiles and Isaac surrounded him. He closed his eyes and pictured Hythor, sitting in the woods with an impish grin on his face. With a snort of annoyance, Scott rolled his eyes at the thought of an impish wolf. "Great even my subconscious is obnoxious." He took a deep breath and started to concentrate on the room in his mind where he stuffed all of the boxes. Hythor told him to work on his focus and he figured that it couldn't hurt to start with his Econ box. Maybe he would even manage to know an answer or two in class. He opened the box and started to sort through all of his thoughts.

"McCall!"

Scott felt his desk shake as Isaac kicked him from behind. "Yeah?"

"Nice of you to join us, McCall." The coach snarled as he crowded his star player and Scott could hear snickers around the room. "Now, how about you tell me about Gross Domestic Product."

"The net amount of products produced and consumed by a nation and the most often used indicator of a countries economic health." Scott's eyes grew wide as the words left his mouth and he was more than aware of the dead silence in the room.

Flinstock's eyes scrutinized him, trying to decide if the answer was a fluke. "Difference between Gross Domestic Product and Gross National Product?"

"Um…ownership versus location?"

"Yes!" Coach Finstock turned pumping his fist in the air. "Thank you McCall. We might just bring home another championship after all."

As soon as the Coach's back was turned, Scott felt Stiles' hand slam into his shoulder. "What the hell, man?"

Scott just shrugged. "I don't know." He turned back to the teacher, finding it easier to keep the majority of his attention on class for the first time in months. Maybe Hythor was right after all.


	4. Chapter 4

Scott was surprised that Stiles made it to the locker room before he finally lost his cool. After seven hours of watching his best friend suddenly snap back into the somewhat geeky guy who paid attention in class, Stiles was ready to explode. "What is wrong with you? What did Derek do to you?"

Scott sighed heavily, noticing both Boyd and Isaac at either end of the row, keeping everyone away from their new healer. "It wasn't Derek. We fought, I got thrashed and joined the pack, but this is something else." He gestured to his body guards.

"You don't look thrashed."

Scott slammed one of his gloves onto the bench next to him. "Let's just say I'm a bigger freak than we thought and leave it at that until we are out of Argent territory."

Stiles waved his arms in obvious frustration. "You so owe me an explanation!"

Scott just nodded. He gave his usual half speed effort during practice and tried to ignore Jackson and his larger than life ego. He did find it amusing that both Boyd and Isaac seemed to target the obnoxious co-captain during drills, though he did attempt to reel them in when it was apparent they might cause Jackson to shift in the middle of the field.

By the time Scott and his entourage exited the school to find Derek's car waiting, he was ready to hurl something across the parking lot. "Get in."

Taking a deep breath, Scott forced back his anger and retracted his growing claws. "No." He kept his eyes averted, careful not to challenge the Alpha. "I need time to talk to Stiles without an audience. You can follow us back to the house and I'll go lock myself in my room like a good little prisoner."

"Scott," Derek snarled with irritation.

"I get it alright? Call off the dogs and let me ride home with my friend in peace."

Derek studied the trembling in the shaman's arms and knew Scott was holding back immense anger. "You have two hours. I'll be outside if you need me."

Shoulders slumping in relief, Scott pulled Stiles to his Jeep before Derek could change his mind. He barely had the door shut before Stiles was firing off questions. "Just drive, I'll explain on the way." Stiles groaned but fired up the engine of the tired Jeep. He was satisfied when Scott started spilling all of the details of the last eighteen hours as soon as they peeled out of the parking lot. "So I got to the station and got jumped as soon as I was through the door."

Stiles felt his grip on the steering wheel tighten as Scott described the battle with Derek. "But you've fought him before. Why did you heal? Was it because you joined the pack?"

"No." He huffed in annoyance at being interrupted. "I was getting to that." He looked in the side mirror and noticed a familiar Camaro tailgating the Jeep. "When I woke up we were fighting, again, because apparently I was blocking the pack bond and Derek couldn't feel me like he could the rest of the pack."

Stiles was practically vibrating with questions. "How were you blocking the bond? What do you mean feel you?"

"Do you want to hear this or not?"

"Shutting up." Stiles shot him a sheepish look and turned back to the road. He bit on his tongue to stop himself from asking anymore questions as Scott told him about the spirit battle and his new job as a shaman. "Magical healing powers? This is awesome!"

Scott managed a brief bout of laughter before he slumped back in his seat. "Except the part that everyone will be trying to kill me or kidnap me. Derek is planning on living on the floor in my room and I can't go anywhere without a bodyguard."

Stiles flinched. "Not so awesome." He parked the car and followed Scott into the house. "So what are you going to do?" He turned to see the Camaro pull in behind his car but Derek made no attempt to get out of the vehicle.

"Deal with it. If I can stay out of trouble for a week or two, they might back off." Stiles snorted in disbelief as he veered into the kitchen for a six pack of soda. "Anyway, Hythor said I need someone watching over me when I'm in the Spirit Realm so Derek staying here will take care of that problem." Scott grabbed a bag of chips and started for his room. "If I get this focus thing down, he told me that he would teach me how to help Jackson transition into a wolf."

"No more Kanima, I'm good with that." Stiles dropped down on Derek's sleeping bag out of spite and made sure to cover every inch with his own scent.

"He's going to murder you." An amused smile was on Scott's face as he stretched out on his bed.

"Nah. Derek loves me. We bonded in the pool." Stiles smirked. "He won't kill me."

"Yes I will." Derek watched happily as Stiles squeaked and hopped off the sleeping bag. "You reek of crappy cologne."

"You're over an hour early."

Noticing that Scott's tone was resigned and not angry, Derek remained in his relaxed lean in the window. "I heard you had a break through today."

"Isaac?" The Alpha nodded. "Great. So no privacy whatsoever."

There was an evil glint in Derek's eyes when he leaned forward in challenge. "I still let you go to the bathroom by yourself."

Scott snarled in retaliation. "I will find a way to shoot you."

Stiles watched the tense debate like a tennis match, wanting to relieve the stress. "So about that sudden burst of Econ knowledge?"

"Hythor is teaching me how to compartmentalize thoughts so they are all locked away when I'm trying to clear my mind. I figured I would try to access one of the boxes, see what it did." Scott shrugged uncomfortably. "Everything I know about Econ just came flooding back like some weird matrix upload."

"Nice." Stiles rubbed his hands anxiously. "Think you can learn Kung Fu?"

"Stiles!"

They both looked at the Alpha as he moved into the room, leaning his hulking figure over Stiles. "What? It would be awesome."

"I don't think so." Scott sighed. "Any way, I'm supposed to work on sorting more thoughts tonight until I can completely clear my mind."

Stiles flinched at the thought of the herculean task. He wasn't sure it was possible for him to shut down his mind without very strong drugs. "Is that even possible?"

"According to Hythor, yes." He looked over at Derek. "I'm planning on working on it tonight after homework. Now get out, I still have another hour and a half of freedom."

Rolling his eyes, Derek walked to the window and started to climb out. "What time is your mom getting home?"

"Four am. She's working a double." Scott watched idly as the larger wolf dropped out the window with a soft thud. When he heard the door on the Camaro close and the engine fire up he dropped his head on the bed and groaned. "Which one of you is out there now?"

"Boyd."

He snickered at the annoyed voice that drifted up from the ground below the window. "Come on up." Scott turned to Stiles as the large teen squeezed through the window. "Gears of War?"

"Gears of War." Stiles jumped off the floor and grabbed remotes, tossing one to Boyd and Scott, respectively. Keeping the third, he dropped the game into the disc tray and fired up the video game. "If you're going to be stuck here, you might as well make yourself useful. You can play Cole."

Boyd let out a genuine smile and signed on to the game. "Let's do this."

Handing him a soda, Scott smiled at the pack mate sprawled across his floor. This kind of baby sitting he could handle.

.

* * *

.

Derek growled in irritation an hour later when he walked through the door carrying a heavy bag of food. He could hear the three stooges upstairs playing video games and wanted to smack them upside the head. At least Scott hadn't thrown a fit when Boyd showed up to keep an eye on him, and if this was what it took to keep the peace, so be it. He dropped his keys on the counter and wandered upstairs to Scott's room.

The two wolves in the room let out appreciative growls when they saw the large bag of food and he smirked. Without a word, he reached into the bag and started throwing burgers to the occupants. Boyd, used to the ritual dug into his food without a thought, but Scott threw a questioning glance when he noticed the special order burger with extra ketchup and no pickles. Derek just shrugged and took his usual chair in the corner, digging into to his own burger. He wasn't about to explain why he knew how Scott ordered his food and he certainly wasn't going to admit he paid attention to Stiles' preferences. He heard a snort of amusement from the Shaman as Scott grabbed the bag and pulled out curly fries for the three of them before handing the bag back to Derek. Idle chatter continued throughout the meal as Boyd got to know the other two boys, but both he and Stiles made their excuses and left after dinner to head home.

Scott was silent as he cleaned up the mess from dinner, his mind on all of the things that would have to be done sooner than later. He was going to have to figure out some way to keep his mom from discovering Derek living on his floor. While the nightshift made his evening guards easier, she was bound to wander into his room some night to check on him while Derek was there. It would be more difficult to explain a twenty four year old passed out in his bedroom if she didn't have some forewarning that he was there. "What are you planning on doing when my mom gets home?"

"Wait in the car."

Scott shot him an incredulous look. "The one in the driveway?"

Derek looked to be in physical pain as he studied the boy who was supposed to be his advisor. "The one I'm going to park around the corner."

"Oh." Scott went back to cleaning up the room. "She's been looking for a border for the spare room. Wouldn't it just be easier if you lived here?"

"Does she know who I am?" Derek looked moderately intrigued but knowing Scott, the plan would backfire.

Scott frowned sadly. "Doubtful. She works eighty hours a week and barely sleeps. I can't remember the last time she watched TV." He really hated how much his mother worked, but there wasn't much he could do about it. Even his raise at the clinic wasn't going to help much around the house. This solution might help both problems.

Sighing, Derek nodded. If both he and Scott were located in the same area then it would be easier to pull the pack together to babysit the trouble magnet.

"The room's across the hall. I'll go text Mom to see what she says." Scott left the bedroom in search of his phone. While this would solve a few problems, he wasn't sure how he felt about Derek living under the same roof. He would have no grounds to kick him out when he needed a break and where Derek went, Isaac, Erica and Boyd went. His house was going to turn into pack grand central station, which given the Hale v. Argent history could put his mother in danger.

"Second thoughts?"

Scott jumped. "Stiles is right, you need a bell."

"You need to pay more attention to your surroundings." The Alpha growled in warning. It really was a miracle that Scott was still alive.

"Will she be safe?"

"As safe as she is now." Derek didn't sugarcoat his answer. "Gerard already knows who you are."

"Well that's reassuring."

Counting backwards in his head, Derek reminded himself that Scott was a freaked out kid and relatively new at this. "At least this way she will have us, if not the whole pack here if anyone comes for her."

"You'll protect her? I mean like really protect her?"

"We need a crash course on pack politics." Feeling the boy's fear, Derek moved over to his newest pack member, crowding him against the counter and forcing as much reassurance and sincerity as he could through their bond. "She is the mother of our Shaman, Scott. She is pack whether she knows or not."

Scott relaxed and dodged out from under the Alpha's intimidating stance. Grabbing his bag, he located his phone and checked his messages. When he found nothing else to distract him, he started a conversation with his mother that would no doubt change the course of his future. He was practically gift wrapping permission for Derek to invade his life more than he already did and for a minute, the sophomore wasn't really sure it was a bad thing. 'Have a friend who needs a place to stay. Willing to pay rent, how much you asking?' Hitting send, Scott stared at the phone, waiting for his mother's inevitable question.

Melissa McCall stared at the text with trepidation. Scott was not the best judge of people in the world. Her son was too soft hearted to see the bad in people. 'Friend? How old is this guy. Is a guy right?'

Scott snickered at the phone. 'Twenty-four. No family, living in car.' That part wasn't entirely true, but he figured a subway car was as close to living in your car as you could get.

'Drugs?' She tapped her pen on the desk as she waited for the answer. She couldn't deny they could use the help paying the mortgage but she wasn't excited about her son having a friend that much older.

'No. Asst football coach. GF kicked him out.' Scott heard a growl from behind him and knew Derek wasn't pleased with the conversation.

His mother, however, relaxed. If he worked at the school then he was vetted by the state and should be safe, besides, she could hear Scott's teacher in her head telling her that Scott needed a male role model. Maybe the presence of one of the coaches in the house would get him back on track. 'If you are sure, 200 a month plus food and I want to meet him first.'

Scott laughed. "She feels bad for you. She should be charging you twice that." He turned back to the phone. 'When?'

Melissa fidgeted, trying to decide how much she really trusted Scott's naivety. 'He can stay the night. I'll meet him in the morning before school.'

"Shouldn't trust your judgement either. You would give the devil a place to stay." Derek sat at the table and kicked his feet up on a chair.

"Yeah, wouldn't mention that you're wanted for murder." Scott ducked behind the fridge door to avoid the red glare. "At least this way you don't have to live on the floor and the pack is going to be stomping around here anyway. Now I won't have to explain you to her."

"Football coach?"

"She knows the Lacrosse coaches." He shrugged and sat at the table. "And if you work at the school she will assume you are safe and not question rides to and from school. I'm just assuming you are going to forbid me from riding my bike." Scott rolled his eyes when Derek snarled in warning. "Figured as much." He studied Derek carefully. "You can pay two hundred a month right?"

The alpha scoffed and snatched the phone. 'He said he'll give you $400 a month.'

"What, it's not like you have a day job, do you?" Scott took his phone back and saw his mother's return text. He could almost see her doing a happy dance when she saw the number on the little screen but she replied with a serene 'that will be fine.'

"I'm the sole beneficiary of the Hale line. Money isn't the problem, arrest warrants are." Derek shot him an angry scowl.

"What was I supposed to do? I thought you were dead and I didn't know who Peter was?"

A heavy pout settled on his face and Derek could feel the fierce strum of guilt coming off of the teen. He had to remind himself often that Scott was still a kid, that they all were. He knew Scott and Stiles were terrified when this all began and he couldn't really blame them for spouting out the first thing they could come up with on the spot. It just made things really inconvenient for him. "It's fine." He lifted the backpack from the floor and set it on the table. "Do your homework. I have some calls to make." He heard Scott mumble something about bossy alphas as he walked out of the house to his car. He dialed Isaac's number as he pulled open the door. "Get to Scott's house. I have to go out for a while." There was a grunt of agreement before the line disconnected and Derek crawled behind the wheel of his car. He would never admit it to Scott but this arrangement was probably the best he could hope for in the current situation. A bed and a roof over his head would be appreciated, especially considering that it was the same roof that Scott already slept under, meaning it would actually get used. It was an added bonus that he had running water for the first time since he returned to Beacon Hills.


	5. Chapter 5

He had known Isaac was prowling outside the house minutes after Derek left, but unlike Boyd, Scott didn't extend an invitation to the other beta. He had no problem with Isaac, but he was aware that the violent home life left the other sophomore bitter and abrasive. Isaac was not one to come chill out at the kitchen table with him until Derek returned, so he didn't bother to try and convince him.

Derek returned half an hour later, just as Scott was finishing his Economics homework, but aside from dropping his bag in the hall and jacket on the chair, the Alpha made no other noise. Scott looked at him questioningly. "You can go watch TV or something. It won't bother me." Derek shot him a disbelieving glare and took a seat at the table. The only sound in the room was the turning of pages as Scott read the chapter for Chemistry homework and Derek flipped through his math homework. After twenty minutes the teen closed his chemistry book, thankful to be finished with his homework for the evening. As he stuffed his book in his bag, his Algebra II notebook smacked him in the head. "Hey!"

Derek dropped a pen on the table and stretched. "Do it again. You missed six problems."

"Are you kidding?" Scott groaned at the stern face of his Alpha and flipped open his notebook. "How long are you planning on checking my homework?"

Derek walked over to the fridge, grabbing a can of soda. "Until you stop flunking out."

Scott snarled in irritation, seriously doubting his intelligence for suggesting Derek move in to the house. "This sucks." He dropped his head on his paper and basked in his depression for a moment before he was hit in the head with a dish towel. "Alright!" He rubbed at the sore spot just below his ear and looked back at the problems he missed. "There's nothing wrong with this."

Derek felt his blood pressure spike. "Check your work." He waited for Scott to plug numbers in the calculator and get a different answer. "You're dropping your negative." The teen swore and started erasing his work. "So much for the Matrix."

Scott shot him a dirty look and started reworking his problems. When he was finished he made an exaggerated effort to check his work, to Derek's amusement, and then roughly shoved his notebook in the bag. "I'm going to go work on my focus." He grit his teeth as he stood from the table. "You can't be in the room." Derek shot him a warning glance. "I can't concentrate when you're glaring at me."

Derek smirked, but nodded his assent. "Where's the laundry room." He gestured to the duffle bag in the hall.

"In the basement." Scott relaxed when he realized that Derek wasn't going to fight him, but then again, the Alpha needed him to be trained as quickly as possible. He filed the thought away under "panic button" to be remembered the next time he was ready to kill someone for a minute of privacy.

As soon as Scott was safely in his room, Derek exited the house and walked the perimeter, checking for any hunter traps or out of place shadows watching the house. When he was satisfied that the property was secure for the moment, he turned to the entry points, testing the integrity of the locks on all first floor doors and windows. In deference to the Shaman's training efforts, he remained near silent as he moved around the old structure. Making note of the locks he would fix, Derek returned to the house and grabbed his bag, stalking down to the basement to take advantage of the chance for clean clothes, not washed in the river.

.

* * *

.

Scott curled into the familiar position in the old reading chair and took a few relaxing breaths. Closing his eyes, he tried to sink into his mind and find the room again. He flinched when he opened the door and found stacks and stacks of half open boxes, thoughts leaking out and fluttering around the room in the breeze. As he started gathering the thoughts, each on their own sheet of paper, he was amazed at how vivid his mind conjured the construct. Shifting through the thoughts in his hands, he determined they were all remnants from his homework and started sorting them by subject. When he looked up, he noticed a series of lockers around the room, looking suspiciously like the men's locker room at the school. Scott stood, picking one of the banks of lockers and determined it would house all of his school thoughts. He threw the stack of papers from each subject into a separate locker for each subject before locking the thoughts inside.

That task completed, he moved over to the four boxes that were leaking the most thoughts and rubbed his neck warily. Knowing she was his biggest distraction, Scott started with Allison's box, dragging it over to another bank of lockers marked friends and family, ignoring the pack, hunter and kanima boxes for the moment. He noticed as he started putting thoughts in the locker, that he hadn't talked to Allison throughout the chaos of the day and made a note to call her when he was done.

Shutting the locker on those thoughts, he moved to the pack box and dragged it to another row, giving each member their own locker. He repeated the process in the next row with the hunters, fighting the fear that came with the thoughts of Gerard. Jackson was in the last row with lockers for the mystery of his master, the cure and the link between the victims. After he was done, he crashed onto a bench in exhaustion. The remaining boxes seemed to be leaking fewer thoughts and Scott decided to wrap it up for the night. Leaving the locker room, he found himself sitting in his room. Scott stretched his muscles as he checked the clock, amazed that he had been meditating for almost three hours. Groaning, he walked over to the door, shouting down to Derek that he was done training, before turning around and crashing on his bed and slipping into sleep almost instantly.

.

* * *

.

Melissa McCall wasn't sure what to expect when she got home two hours early from her shift at two am but the handsome man folding laundry in her living room wasn't it. "Hi, I'm Scott's mom, Melissa."

Derek appeared to be surprised by her sudden presence, despite the fact her heard her pull up to the house. "Derek Aleph, nice to meet you."

"You didn't have to wait up, I could have met you in the morning."

"I figured you would sleep better if you had a chance to meet me first." He moved to grab the pile of t-shirts on the chair so she could sit.

Smiling at his consideration, she dropped her purse next to the chair and sat heavily on the welcoming cushions. "So you're a coach?"

"Strength and conditioning." He smiled disarmingly and started to move his clothes back into the duffle bag. "I hope you don't mind, I borrowed your laundry room."

Melissa felt herself swoon a little. "It's fine." Taking a deep breath and forcing her face into the stern parent mask. "So tell me a little about yourself."

Derek shrugged sheepishly. "Not much to tell. I lost my sister in a car accident a few months ago. She was the last of my family." His posture was relaxed and his smile charming. "I moved in with my girlfriend but she decided she liked her boss more."

"Ouch." Melissa couldn't help feeling her heart break a little for him, and yet there was a strength about him that told her he would survive the losses just fine. "Do you know Scott well?"

"I see him fairly regularly in the weight room when I'm helping my guys train." He gestured to the staircase. "He's a good kid, if a bit too trusting."

Her eyebrow raised in shock. "Yes, he is." Melissa leaned forward, studying him intently. "I unfortunately have to work too much and he's left alone too often. It would be nice to have someone in the house with him during the night." Her face held a warning of pain. "That being said, he's my baby and if I think for one minute you being here is hurting him in anyway, my first call will be to the sheriff and your ass will be on the street."

Derek had to fight the smile threatening to break free, finding her fierce protectiveness of Scott reassuring. "Like I said, he's a good kid and I want to see him live up to his potential. I heard from his coach that he was struggling with classes. With your permission, I would like to help him with that."

Melissa allowed the stunned happiness show on her face as she sat back. "Alright then, rent is four hundred a month and you chip in for food. Do you have any questions for me?"

"Scott asked if I would give him a ride to school in the mornings, do you mind?" Derek mentally checked off his list of everything that might upset the matriarch.

"No, relieved actually. I hate him riding his bike to school." She smiled and stood from the easy chair. "Welcome to the household, Derek."

"Thank you." He stood as well, grabbing his bag.

"Did Scott show you your room?" She gestured for him to follow her up the stairs, opening the door to the spare room. "It's not much, but you have your own bathroom. As long as you're not tearing down any walls, you can do what ever you want to the room."

He walked into the room, dropping his bag on the bed and almost groaned at the sight of the mattress. "It'll be fine."

Melissa knocked her knuckles against the door frame, fighting a case of nerves. "I'm going to crash now. I'll see you in the morning, Derek."

"Good night, Melissa." He shot her another breath taking smile and enjoyed the flutter of her heart beat as she retreated to her room. Dumping his bag and shoes on the floor, Derek crawled onto the bed and sighed in comfort. After months of sleeping on floors it was good to be in a real house again. He stretched out his senses, hearing Scott sleeping peacefully across the hall and Melissa's murmuring about being a blushing teenager. Not sensing anything around the perimeter of the house, he allowed his eyes to fall closed and slept soundly.

.

* * *

.

Scott smashed a hand into his alarm clock at seven twenty in the morning, cursing when he heard the plastic crack. He groaned at the thought of buying yet another alarm clock as he stretched. The smell of bacon and eggs tickled his senses as he crawled out of bed and yanked on a pair of sweats. "Mom?" He peeked his head in the kitchen and frowned in confusion. Derek was standing at the stove cooking enough food to feed an army. "What are you doing?"

Derek shot him an exaggerated glare. "Cooking."

Scott snarled, not awake enough to deal with Derek's sarcasm yet. "I meant why?"

"I've been eating fast food for months." He didn't offer any more information so Scott moved to the fridge, grabbing the milk carton and pouring a glass. He held his tongue when Derek plated food and dropped it in front of him at the counter. Pointing out the fact Derek was doing anything domestic was asking for a hit to the back of his head.

Melissa followed her son into the room a few minutes later in search of her usual quick bowl of cereal before running out the door to run errands before another shift at the hospital. Before she could reach for a bowl, Derek handed her a plate and a mug of coffee. She shot a questioning glance to her son as she sat down at the table but he offered only a shrug. She took a sip of the coffee after dumping half the sugar bowl in it and groaned in satisfaction. "Okay, we can keep him."

Derek sat down with a wry grin and tucked in to his own food. There was silence as the table's occupants gobbled down the rare home cooked meal. Thanking Derek for the food, Melissa gave Scott a kiss before dumping her dishes in the sink and jogging out the door.

"Wow." Scott watched his mom pull out of the driveway. "Did I miss something?"

"As usual." Derek dumped his dishes in the sink as well and turned to his Shaman. "I don't do dishes."

"Of course you don't." Scott rolled his eyes.

"We're leaving in fifteen minutes." Derek left him to his appointed cleaning duties and stalked back up the stairs.

Tossing all of the dishes in the washer, Scott sprinted up the stairs for a quick shower. He had no doubt that Derek would drag him out the the car in his underwear if he wasn't ready in time. Walking into his room, he was met with the overwhelming smell of his Alpha in the air and he cursed the fact Derek scented his clothes again. "Derek!" Though the older man didn't respond, Scott could just imagine his amused smirk as he slammed his bedroom door.


	6. Chapter 6

Scott was walking toward Chemistry when he felt his body being yanked into an empty classroom. He was about to swipe his claws defensively when a familiar scent tickled his nose and he relaxed. "What happened to you? You run off to fight Derek and then nothing! You didn't even get me a message yesterday."

Scott flinched at Allison's worry and tried to remember if he attempted to call her. He started to answer her question when Derek's voice rang in his ear about absolute secrecy. While he knew that Allison would never intentionally tell his secret, he wasn't sure it was a good idea for any of the Argent's to know right now, at least until he completed his training. "I'm okay." He gave her a reassuring smile and brushed a lock of hair behind her ear. "We fought, he won and I healed."

Allison pulled back, looking at him with accusation in her eyes. "What does that mean? I saw you getting out of his car this morning."

A weary sigh fell from his lips. "It means I am part of his pack."

"You said you were staying out of this, that you weren't taking sides." Her anger was instant and he fought the urge to step away from her.

"I didn't have much of a choice. I lost the fight and my wolf submitted." He took a deep breath and prepared for the battle he knew was coming, especially considering he couldn't reveal half of the events leading up to truly joining Derek's pack.

Allison shook her head in denial. "You still have a choice. You can stay away from Derek."

He could tell she was hurt, but he knew she would never get it, even if he could find the words to explain it to her. "It's not that simple." He searched her eyes looking for any understanding. "I'm bonded to the pack now, I can feel them." He placed his hand over his heart. "I can't just walk away, and I wouldn't want to even if I could." The lack of words to describe the feelings adequately left him fumbling. "I can't describe it, but I haven't felt this safe since I was bitten."

"But you aren't safe, you just walked into the middle of a war." Tears of frustration filled her eyes and spilled over her cheeks.

Scott reached up to touch her face, stopping his hand just inches from her cheek before he could give in to the temptation while they were in public. It was bad enough that anyone passing the classroom could see them. "I was already part of this war. Your family wants me dead and there is nothing I can say or do to make them like me." He frowned and dropped his hand. "At least this way I'm not facing your Grandfather's sword alone." He turned and walked away as the warning bell sounded, pausing with his hand on the knob. "I'm sorry this is hurting you, but I don't want to die, Allison. I'm only sixteen."

.

* * *

.

"You okay?"

Scott looked over at his lab partner and smiled hesitantly. "I got in a fight with Allison." His whisper was met with a grimace from Stiles.

"About the mystical mojo?"

Shaking his head furiously, Scott kicked Stiles in the shin and indicated for him to stop talking about it. "No that I joined Derek's pack."

"Ahh," Stiles rubbed his leg and scowled at the bruise he knew would be there soon. "So not talking about the rest then. Got it." Before he could inquire anymore, Harris breezed in the room with a stack of papers.

"Clear your desks. You can have a writing utensil and a calculator." He started handing out the papers with a manic glee.

Scott started dumbly at his friend. "What's going on?"

"Dude, where have you been? It's the Chem midterm." Stiles looked over at Scott finding a deer in headlights look glazed in his eyes. "Relax, just do the Neo thing. You'll be fine."

"Right." Scott took a deep breath and felt sweat beading on his forehead.

A paper was slapped in front of him with an amused snort from his teacher. "Better hope you pass this one, McCall, or you're mine for another year."

A shiver ran up his spine as he grabbed his pen and his calculator from his bag. The words on the page meant nothing to him and Scott wanted to scream. Taking a panicked breath, he closed his eyes and tried to concentrate on the lockers. Flinging the door open on his Chem locker, Scott tried to sift through all the papers to find something about covalent bonds that wouldn't make him sound like an idiot. As soon as the manifested papers were in his hands, he started to feel the information coming back to him. His body relaxed and he opened his eyes to see that fifteen minutes had already passed and he didn't have a single answer on his paper. Grimacing, he grabbed his pen and started working his way through the exam as quickly as he could.

Stiles put a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder as they walked out of the classroom an hour later. "I'm sure you passed."

"I hope so. I'd rather not be a permanent sophomore." Scott kicked at a chunk of dirt on the floor and shuffled along to his locker. Thankful that it was his last class, Scott looked forward to being anywhere but at school. "You want to come over and hang out?"

"I thought you had to work." Stiles frowned at his friend.

Scott took a second to figure out what day it was before cursing and sprinting for the door. "You're right, I'm late. Call you later." Stiles rolled his eyes as he watched his friend dodge bodies and run into the woods behind the school towards the short cut to the clinic.

It took Scott ten minutes to run the three miles to work and he mentally applauded the wolf's enhanced speed. Skidding to a stop, he calmed his breathing and straightened his clothes before walking into the building. "Sorry I'm late, I forgot it was Wednesday."

Dr. Deacon smiled at his young apprentice and gestured to the clock on the wall. "You're right on time."

Scott relaxed and dropped his book bag behind the check in counter. "What are we doing today?" He pulled off his jacket and followed the vet into an exam room where a four year old boxer was lying on the table.

"Brutus here has a cyst that needs to be drained on his leg." Deacon ran his hand over the anesthetized dog's flank.

Scott nodded and started gathering supplies that would be needed for the procedure as his boss watched on with an approving smile. When he handed Deacon the syringe, the other man gasped as Scott's skin made contact. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"No." Deacon smiled. "You accepted your wolf."

Scott felt his stomach lurch into his throat. "How do you know that?"

"It's a gift." His attention turned back to Brutus as he inserted the needle into the abcess and began his work. "How did Derek take it when he found out you were a shaman?"

"Um, stalkerish?" The turn of the questions from his human mentor was odd and Scott wasn't sure how to handle the conversation. He knew that Deacon had been around werewolves, even treated them, but he wasn't sure how the man could just suddenly know he was a werewolf witch doctor. "I did join his pack, so I think that helps." It was nice to have someone to talk to that didn't require a trip to another realm.

"Has he started scenting you yet?" Deacon smiled at his assistant, amused by his exasperation.

Scott took the instruments from table when the minor procedure was done and started the cleaning process. "What is up with that? He doesn't do it to any of the others?"

Deacon seemed to take a minute to organize his thoughts. "Do you know what happens when you touch someone now that you've accepted the wolf?"

"I take away pain, you already taught me that." As he carried Brutus' oversized body to the holding pen, he looked up at his boss, suspecting that this conversation wasn't going to bring good news.

"I think we might need to have another talk." He gestured for his office and waited until they were both comfortably seated before he continued. "My family comes from a long line of Native American shamans." He smiled at a far off memory. "Like you, we combine faith and herbs to heal the sick and injured, but unlike you, I have no real supernatural powers beyond the properties of the herbs I use." He gestured to Scott. "As a shaman I am more sensitive to the supernatural around me, even if I can't use the power. I could tell the second you handed me the syringe what you were because you give off an aura of peace." He smiled knowingly. "I'm guessing, despite his controlling nature, that Derek has been less hostile since this happened?"

Scott frowned, thinking back over the last two days and found himself agreeing with the statement. "Yeah I guess. But what does this have to do with smelling like him."

"Werewolves don't need to touch you to feel that tranquility. Anyone within two hundred yards of you is going to be able to sense it and know you are a shaman." Deacon leaned back in his chair, tapping gently on his desk. "Derek has survived ten years of pain and loss. I would imagine that the feelings of peace and wellbeing, of home, that he gets around you are such a relief that he would fight to the death to hang on to them. If you reek of your alpha, no werewolf outside your pack will come within a mile of you."

"So they won't be able to tell that I'm a shaman."

The veterinarian nodded, patting Scott's shoulder as he passed him on his way out the room. A sense of stillness washed over the older man at the contact and he smirked. "It also has the benefit of scaring off potential mates."

"What?" Scott chased his boss down the hall to get clarification on the comment but was interrupted by the phone. Cursing, he changed course and ran back to the front desk, spilling out the professional greeting required.

"Where have you been? You were supposed to be here half an hour ago."

Scott flinched at the anger in his mother's voice. "I was?"

"Yes! You have an appointment with Dr. Grady. We talked about this yesterday." Scott flinched. He didn't need the appointment, considering the bite healed his lungs, but he couldn't tell his mother that, which meant he had to keep his semiannual appointment with his pulmonary specialist.

"I'm sorry. I forgot." Despite what Hythor said, he had been forgetting a lot of things today. While his school work was better, his every day life was falling apart. He wondered if maybe the lockers weren't the best solution. As soon as he locked the thoughts away they were gone until he opened the door again. He needed to talk to Hythor about it again. "I'll be there in a few minutes." Hanging up on his mother before she could screech at him again, Scott ran down the hall and let Dr. Deacon know about the appointment.

"That's fine, Scott. I'll see you tomorrow for the Gresley surgery." Scott nodded and grabbed his book bag, sprinting out the door and almost smashing into Derek.

"You left without me."

Scott felt his body slam against the brick of the clinic wall and groaned. "I forgot okay! I'm forgetting everything today." He pushed Derek off him and scurried around the car. "You can yell at me on the way to the hospital so I can go to this appointment I don't need."

Derek snarled and wrenched open his door, climbing behind the wheel. "How could you forget?" His growl matched the roar of the engine and Scott flinched at his anger.

He turned to start defending his case when he caught the emotions pouring off the alpha. He was baffled by the all consuming worry the Derek was masking with anger. "I've been forgetting everything today. I don't know what I did, but somehow when I started sorting my thoughts I locked them away completely. I don't know." He rubbed anxiously at his hair. "I'll talk to Hythor tonight during training." Derek settled slightly but Scott could still hear his heart rate was elevated. Nervously, he reached out to touch the alpha's wrist, recoiling at Derek's snarl. Scott closed his eyes and took a centering breath before wrapping his hand around the flesh, regardless of the warning. Immediately Derek's heart rate calmed and his body relaxed into the seat.

"What are you doing?" Derek's voice signaled irritation but his biometric rhythms told a different story. The fear, pain and anger that had been driving him since the fire were suddenly gone.

"I'm not really sure. Dr. Deacon said that I can calm people down by touching them, I figured you needed it." The teen rubbed his palms on his knees and turned his eyes in embarrassment.

Derek gave a distracted nod, unwilling to admit how well it worked. "Don't touch anyone."

Scott started to protest before he snapped his mouth shut, realizing that this was probably another way of telling him not to expose his new abilities to anyone. "I'll try." The rest of the ride to the hospital was made in silence and Scott didn't even bother to ask if Derek was waiting for him. He crawled out of the car, and dragged his feet toward the nurses station so he could be screamed at by his mother for being irresponsible.

.

* * *

.

Derek sat anxiously in the car while he waited for Scott to finish talking to the doctor. Whatever the trick Scott tried earlier was wearing off and all the pent up feelings were washing over him in waves, especially being this far away from the shaman. He was worried about the kid. Scott seemed genuinely freaked out when he found him at the vet's office and Derek wanted to be able to _fix it_ because no matter how hard they tried Scott just couldn't seem to catch a break. Sighing, he turned his energy inward, checking on the emotional wellbeing of the rest of his pack. Isaac was bored, Erica felt exasperated and Boyd was amused but he sensed no trouble from them. Scott on the other hand, for all the tranquility his new shaman status was supposed to bring, felt like he would burst from the feelings of stress boiling inside. Frowning he picked up his phone and dialed Isaac's number. "What happened today?"

Isaac didn't even pretend not to understand what he was asking. "He had a fight with Allison about you." Derek cursed. "He seemed really out of it today, too. Like he kept forgetting things."

Derek let out a grumble of disapproval. At least Scott had told him part of the story unprompted, but they would have to talk about Allison. He needed to know if he told her anything. If he was lucky, Scott would end things with the hunter's progeny and all would be right with his world, unfortunately, karma hated Derek.

.

* * *

.

"Well, the new medication is obviously working." Scott rolled his eyes behind the doctor's back as he took credit for the unexplained recovery of the werewolf's lungs.

"I haven't been taking it."

The confession brought a gasp from his mother. "What?"

"I haven't taken anything in four months. I just stopped needing it." He shrugged as if this little detail wasn't going to freak his mother out. "I didn't want you to keep paying for it when I didn't need it." Scott could see the doctor's frustration that he couldn't take credit for the miraculous turn around.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Melissa glared at his son and he flinched.

"I told you I didn't need to come here again." He gestured toward the doctor in case his mother had any question as to what he was referring. "You didn't believe me."

She studied him as if he were a sample under a microscope. "We'll talk more about this later."

Dr. Grady, with the wind firmly knocked from his sails, turned back to Scott. "Well, given your test results and the fact you haven't been taking any medication, I will agree to take you off the preventative inhaler." Scott cocked his head at the M.D.'S arrogance. "But you should still carry your rescue inhaler with you at all times. If you are incident free at your next appointment then we will talk about taking you off medication completely."

"Great, can I get out of here? I have a midterm tomorrow." Scott was already hopping off the table and pulling on his shirt.

"Scott!" Melissa wasn't sure what was going on but her son never behaved with anything other then cooperation during these visits.

"Sorry, Mom, but it's Economics and I need every second I can get." He grabbed his bag and kissed her on the cheek as he dashed out the door, leaving her to deal with the irritated doctor. At least he was studying, that was a welcomed change.

"Anything new?" Derek looked over at his passenger as Scott secured his seatbelt.

"The doctor took credit for my lungs healing." He shrugged his shoulders and closed his eyes as the car rolled out of the parking lot.

"What happened with Allison?"

"Freaking watch dogs." Scott snarled and debated telling Derek to pull over and let him out but he knew it would never happen. "She didn't take it well when I told her I joined your pack."

"And the rest?"

There was no mistaking Derek's question whether he told Allison about his new position in the realm of werewolves. "No."

Derek could tell the conversation was ratcheting up his tension level. "You okay?"

"Fine." Scott sighed and fought down the smart remark, feeling nothing but genuine concern coming from the alpha. "I just need to get through these exams and figure out a way to stop forgetting everything around me. I'll be lucky if I passed Chem and I have Econ tomorrow. I'm failing both."

Derek growled at the reminder. "Talk to Hythor first. It's no use trying to study if you aren't going to have access to the information."

Scott sighed heavily and nodded. "I have to get to the spirit plane." He rubbed a hand through his hair and tried to calm his frazzled mind.

"I'll figure out how to bring you back in two hours." Derek pulled into the driveway and climbed out of the car, not waiting for Scott to follow. He sniffed the air for any unknown people in the vicinity and entered the house, listening for intruders. Satisfied that the house was empty, he opened the fridge and dug around for something dinner worthy. Scott grabbed a granola bar and continued upstairs to start his meditation. Derek remained in the kitchen munching on a ham sandwich as Scott moved around his room, dropping his bag and getting comfortable. When he felt the shaman's link close off, he knew that Scott was successful and he turned to the tasks he wanted to get done that evening before the light faded. He walked out to the car and grabbed his bag from the hardware store and set about changing the locks on the windows to make them more secure. It wouldn't stop someone who really wanted to get in and was willing to break the glass, but they would give him a warning if they were attacked.

.

* * *

.

"You're earlier than I expected." Hythor sat on his log and waited for Scott to sit down.

"I need to study tonight but I think I screwed something up. I was sorting my thoughts just like you told me but I was forgetting things all day that I shouldn't have."

Hythor smiled reassuringly at Scott's obvious feelings of failure. "You didn't screw up." He laughed. "You did the job too well." He stood signaling for the boy to join him. "Come, show me to your construct."

Scott tilted his head to the side and frowned. "How?"

"We are in your mind, Scott. If you wish to be there, we will be there." The student scrunched his eyes closed and pictured the locker room. "Well done, Little Healer." Hythor smiled and walked around the room, investigating the lockers that were already marked and locked shut, as well as the empty areas. "This will do very well for future work." He noticed boxes in the corner with papers leaking out of them. "These are your free thoughts?"

"Yeah," He kicked at the floor in embarrassment. "I was going to finish with those tonight."

"You have progressed much further than I thought you would, so stop kicking yourself." Hythor walked over to the first bank of lockers. "The problem you're having is that you are filing all your thoughts, even your daily tasks and they are getting locked away with their respective categories. In that case you can only get to them if you are thinking about the topic you filed them under. He smiled and raised his hand to a locker. When he lowered it again a sign saying daily crap was taped to the front of a large locker. Scott snickered thinking it was a very Stiles thing to write. "From now on put the items that you need constant access to in this locker. You can quickly store them away when you need complete focus for healing or meditating. You just have to open the door before you leave here and you will be able to remember them without having to come here first."

Scott relaxed, letting his body drop onto one of the benches. "I can work with that."

"Go study young one, I will see you in two days. You will be finished by then and we can start working on the steps necessary to heal your friend." Hythor put a comforting hand on Scott's head and ruffled his hair. "You are doing exceptionally well. You are far surpassing most born shaman."

"Thank you." Scott closed his eyes and let the frustration of the day flow out of his mind, relaxing into his bed as he came back to reality.

"You're feeling better." Derek gave him an approving look from his sentry post at Scott's door. "Hythor help?"

"Yes." The younger wolf stretched his arms and sat up enough to grab his bag. "Do you need anything before I start studying?"

Derek smirked, knowing that the offer was hollow. "No." Shifting his weight off the door, he disappeared as silently as he arrived, leaving Scott to curse the boring theories of Adam Smith.


End file.
